Davian
Davian (DAY-vee-en), sometimes called Dav (rhymes with 'have'), is the central protagonist of The Licanius Trilogy. He is an orphan who was raised at the school in Caladel, where he met his best friends Wirr and Asha. Despite bearing the telltale Mark of the Gifted, he has never been able to successfully wield Essence — much to his frustration. Davian hides a dark secret: When other people lie to him, he sees a wisp of black smoke emerge from their mouths. This power marks him out as an Augur. Fearing the consequences, he only confides this in his best friends. The night before his Trials, Ilseth Tenvar appears appears at his door. The Elder knows his secret, and convinces Davian that his powers are needed to fix the failing Boundary and save Andarra from the forces of Aarkein Devaed. Ready to do his part, Davian embarks northward on a journey to find the ''sig'nari'', with a mysterious glowing cube to guide him and Wirr to watch his back — unaware that his role is far bigger than he ever could have imagined. Appearance Davian is a bookish young man of about 16. He is of slight build with tan skin and curly black hair. He has a long scar along the left side of his face running from his eye to his chin — which he regrets, and dreams about living without. After his imprisonment in Ilshan Gathdel Teth, and subsequently Zvaelar, Davian's physique becomes far more muscular owing to his intense physical training. He also bears the mark of a circle containing three wavy lines on his neck, and gains another scar underneath his left eye that crosses his old one. History A Mythical Figure Before he was born, Davian featured prominently in the visions of Andarra's Augurs. While the specifics of his actions are not clear, consensus indicates that he was portrayed as a highly powerful liberator and saviour. His coming was greatly anticipated by the Sig'nari, who regarded him as a figure of legend — the greatest man of his age. Unusual Origins Davian was conceived in Zvaelar by two prisoners of the Venerate. His father, Raeleth, was a religious metalworker whose writings founded the resistance movement in Ilshan Gathdel Teth. His Mother, Niha, was a Gifted bodyguard for Tal'kamar Deshrel, who was imprisoned for aiding a man who worked against the Venerate's rule. Despite being from different eras, the pair met and fell in love with the assistance of an older version of Davian himself (also imprisoned in the temporal prison for resisting the Venerate's interrogation). A few months prior to their departure they conceived a son, unaware that the future version of him had been with them all along. Davian's parent's worked closely with their future son and Tal to formulate a plan of escape. While it was eventually successful, there was a major complication: Niha was unable to use her transformation Vessel to travel through the rift while she was pregnant. Seeing no alternative, Tal used his powers to kill her unborn child in the womb, allowing her to escape alive. He did not tell Niha to ensure she would not stay in the prison for her child's sake. Unbeknownst to everyone, the unborn child was actually an Augur. Possessing the ability to subconsciously use kan, he kept himself alive by drawing Essence from his mother's Reserve, and successfully traveled through the rift with Niha back to Ilshan Gathdel Teth. When he was eventually born, this unique condition caused him to live in a state of "un-death". While he technically died before birth, he was able to live and grow normally — provided that there were enough sources of Essence nearby for him to draw upon. This would also eventually allow him to travel through the rift without consequence. A Bittersweet Departure A year after escaping from Zvaelar, Niha returned to life in Ilshan Gathdel Teth. Raising the child on her own, she struggled because her son seemed to be perpetually ill and rather sickly. While she did all she could to care for him, she always felt incredibly exhausted in his presence, limiting her capability to parent. Additionally, due to the absence of the boy's father, she struggled to come up with a name for her son. One night, a time-travelling Tal (this time with the body of Caeden), arrived at her door. After confirming his identity, she confided the difficulties she had in parenting the boy. Realizing the truth about her son, Tal confessed to killing her child but used the boy's unique condition as proof for his identity: Davian. He then asked Niha to relinquish possession of the boy to him so that Davian could properly live out his destiny. Niha was shocked to learn that the infant in her arms was the same man who saved her life. Aware of Davian's eventual fate, she was hesitant to let go of her child, but ultimately relented after realizing that the lack of Essence sources north of the Boundary was the cause of his frailty — and that he would eventually die with her if not taken elsewhere. Tearfully, she bade the boy (now officially named Davian) farewell, telling him how proud she is of the man he will one day become. She also insisted that Tal take the silver ring Vessel that Raeleth crafted for her, as a memento of their love for Davian. Tal took the infant through a Gate to Tol Athian, then slowed time to covertly place him in Taeris Sarr's room. Confident that he could trust the man, he left the young Davian there with the ring and a note, which revealed the boy's identity and instructed Taeris to keep him safe. Hidden Away Alerted by the sudden movement, Taeris turned to find the boy of legend sitting nonchalantly in his room. Incredulous, he read the note and discovered that he has been tasked with the responsibility of keeping Davian safe. Unable to raise a child safely on his own in Tol Athian, Taeris decided to take the boy to a Gifted school in Caladel where he could grow up, free of prying eyes. Unaware of the ring's significance, he deposited it in a storeroom. Trusting the school's Elders to take care of the boy, Taeris left him in their possession shortly after visiting the school. He did not share the boy's origins, intending for Davian to live a relatively normal youth, but stressed the importance of keeping him safe. Taeris left soon after, but occasionally returned in secret to observe the boy for any signs of his Augur abilities. Davian grew up underneath the watchful eye of the school's staff, especially that of Mistress Alita, and frequently pitched in with menial labour tasks, often visiting Caladel to acquire supplies. He had a fondness for swimming and was rather curious, despite believing that he would likely work in the school for the rest of his life. He also began to exhibit a strange ability: When other people lied to him, a wisp of black smoke would emerge from their mouths. Correctly fearing that this power would out him as an Augur, he kept it to himself. A Rough Awakening As Taeris checked in on Davian and saw him growing up normally, he began to worry that perhaps the boy was not the promised figure of legend. Aware that Andarra would soon be in danger, he crafted a plan to test if Davian was truly an Augur. He knew the boy often visited Caladel for supply runs, and paid a group of sailors and thugs to corner Davian and lightly rough him up — just to see if any powers would emerge in self-defence. On a regular supply journey into Caladel, when he was about 13, Davian was cornered by the group of thugs Taeris had employed, who quickly whisked him into a tavern where they could harass him in private. Unbeknownst to Taeris, the pack's leader had a very spiteful attitude towards the Gifted (having lost family in the Unseen War), which included anyone who served them, and sought to harm the boy far more than what was promised. Heavily drunk at this point, the man had his cronies pin Davian to a table as the barkeep watched, refusing to intervene. Using a knife, he began to carve a long, painful cut down the side of the boy's face. Before the torture continued, a horrified Taeris burst onto the scene. Taeris moved to stop the men, but by that point his plan had already succeeded in terrible fashion. Davian, highly traumatized by the pain, tapped his Augur abilities and Controlled everyone in the room, forcing them to repeatedly scar their own faces with knives, broken bottles and other sharp objects close to hand. The mutilation continued despite their panicked screams, and everyone else present except Taeris eventually dropped dead from blood loss. Spent, Davian then collapsed to the floor. Taeris healed him with Essence, profusely apologizing for the unintentional outcome of his test, and returned the boy back to the school. Unwilling to allow Davian to take responsibility for the deaths, he took the blame himself, eventually losing his position at Tol Athian and becoming a fugitive. The incident also created a permanent bond between Davian and Taeris: As long as the boy lived, the man would feel compelled to scar his own face — over time, this would cause him to mar his own features almost beyond recognition. Fruitless Training Traumatized by the attack, Davian's mind blotted out the specific events that caused his trademark scar. Fragments still returned to him in his nightmares, but the most significant outcome of the affair was his new Mark — earned when he used Essence in self-defence. While he still helped out around the school, Davian joined as a student and his time was largely devoted to studying from that point onward. He relentlessly pored over textbooks, references and personal accounts but was simply unable to access Essence again. Because of his "un-death", he did not possess a Reserve, but he did not know this and kept trying to draw from one. During this time, he met Wirr, a confident and talented young man in his own year, and Asha, a kindhearted merchant's daughter a year his junior. The trio became inseparably close, and Davian eventually developed romantic feelings for Asha but chose to keep them a secret. He also entrusted the pair with the knowledge of his Augur abilities; A measure of his faith in their loyalty. Despite their support, Davian still remained unable to wield Essence. Time passed, and as his year's Trials soon approached, he studied vigorously in the hopes of finally tapping his Reserve. Fearing the worst, his friends stayed at his side and prepared to bid him goodbye in case he failed and was turned into a Shadow. Activities An Urgent Request The days of Davian's idyllic life at Caladel are coming to an end. With weeks left before his Trials, he is still unable to wield Essence again, despite studying every trick in every book he can get his hands on. He is summoned alongside Wirr to watch the punishment of Leehim, a young Gifted who attempted to run away from the school without authorization. The pair observe as he is turned into a Shadow, and grimly consider that Davian will likely join the young fugitive very soon. The next day, Mistress Alita sends Davian into town to fetch some supplies for the kitchen. As he gathers food from the butcher, he is harassed by a group of young men, triggering hazy memories of his last traumatic incident in the town. Before things escalate, Elder Ilseth Tenvar intervenes and the group leaves. Grateful, Davian allows the Elder to accompany him back to the school. He listens as Tenvar tells him about the Unseen War and life under the Augurs' rule. As they arrive at the school, he reveals that the Trials will be taking place the next day, much to Davian's shock. When he returns to his chambers, Asha and Wirr are already waiting for him. Instead of spending what is likely his last night in the school practicing, he requests that they just enjoy each other's company while they still can. After bidding them an emotional farewell, he returns to his room and sleeps easily, having accepted his fate. He is awoken later that night by knocking at his door. Surprised, he opens the door to let in Ilseth Tenvar, who brings urgent news. The Elder knows Davian is an Augur, but has no plans to turn him in. Instead, he gives Davian a peculiar bronze box, and instructs him to journey northwards to find the sig'nari. He further tells Davian that his Augur abilities are needed to fix the failing Boundary and protect Andarra from Aarkein Devaed. Davian is skeptical, but cannot see any black smoke coming from the man. All too aware of the alternative, he accepts the request and prepares to head out that very night. After Tenvar leaves to dispatch the school's guards, Wirr enters Davian's room to check on his friend and is confused to see him hurriedly packing bags. As Davian explains the situation, Wirr insists upon joining him and the young Augur eventually relents. As soon as his friend packs his belongings, the pair escape the school and head out into the night. Journey Through Desriel Davian and Wirr head north towards Desriel, a nation with a very hostile policy against the Gifted. They disguise themselves by using makeup to cover their Marks, and avoid detection by keeping a low profile. Along the way, they discuss the nature of the journey, which is complicated due to the fact that only Davian can see the light emanating from the bronze cube. Lacking a better lead, Davian insists on following the light's direction and Wirr agrees, trusting his friend's judgement. At an inn in the border town of Talmiel, they are discovered by a pair of Hunters and nearly arrested, only to be miraculously saved by another Hunter named Breshada. Disgusted by her actions, she tells them to leave quickly and tell someone named Tal'kamar that her debt is repaid. The pair are confused by the events, but heed her instructions and run out of the inn. Looking for a way to cross the Devliss, Davian and Wirr strike a deal with a smuggler named Anaar. The man agrees to take them across the river, but extorts them for most of their money. When they arrive, he attempts to cheat them out of the bronze box, but Davian unknowingly Controls him with his Augur abilities, forcing the man to return across the river and leave them be. Moving through the hostile nation, Davian and Wirr almost run out of money. Happening across a tavern with a gambling table, Davian gains a seat with some Hunters by pretending to be Breshada's apprentice. The game, gesh, is entirely based on bluffing and Davian easily routs the men for most of their coin. Enraged, one of the Hunters tries to kill him but Davian unknowingly slows time, grabbing a sword and impaling his attacker in self-defense. The other Hunters are shocked and, afraid of Davian's fighting ability, tell the pair they will not face trouble if they leave now. Once again, Davian and Wirr leave in a rush and continue their journey northwards. An Unexpected Rescue The glowing cube eventually guides Davian and Wirr to a Desrielite military caravan passing through a forest. Pointing specifically to a prisoner being carted in a wagon, the pair decide to free him to find out more. They are successful in breaking the brutalized and unconscious prisoner free, but are eventually caught and surrounded by the soldiers. Before the conflict can escalate, a sha'teth arrives, killing all of the soldiers. The creature attempts to kill Davian and Wirr, but is hit with an enormous blast of Essence from the now-conscious prisoner. Exhausted, the three young men collapse to the ground, where a bewildered Taeris Sarr discovers them. Explaining that he had been tracking the prisoner for some time, he gathers the trio and takes them to a nearby inn. 'This article is still in progress. ' In the inn that Taeris Sarr has taken them to, Taeris explains that he escaped Administration and execution, and that he has been in the north investigating the Boundary. He says that he was nearby the prisoner because the prisoner has the mark of the Boundary, a wolf, tattooed on his arm. Davian's bronze box also has the wolf mark on it. Davian learns from Taeris that there are no sig'nari in the north and that it is possible to deceive an Augur who can sense deception. He realizes that Ilseth Tenvar lied to him when he sent him to the north. Once the prisoner wakes up, Davian and his companions discover that his name is Caeden, and that he has been accused of killing his whole family and slaughtering the villagers from his home town. Caeden also has the ability to use Essence but does not have the Mark, meaning he is not bound by the Tenets. Caeden does not remember anything before his capture, so he does not know if he committed the murders or not. Taeris believes the Boundary is failing and convinces Davian and Wirr of this by showing them the scale of a dar'gaithin. He believes that Caeden's memories may give them a clue as to what is happening with the Boundary, so they decide to go to Thrindar to seek aid from the royal Andarran envoy at the Song of Swords tournament. The Andarran Princess Karaliene is unable to directly aid the group, but sends swordsman Aelric Shainwiere and his sister Dezia Shainwiere with them as they head to Deilannis as an alternate way back into Andarra. Princess Karaliene also tells Wirr and Davian that the entire school at Calandra was killed. Davian is devastated, especially by the loss of Asha, who he believes to be dead. Taeris's friend Nihim also joins them. While in Deilannis, the group is attacked by a creature called Orkoth, and Nihim is injured. Davian tries to help Nihim, but instead is pulled back in time by the Jha'vett. Time in Deilannis After being pulled back in time around 70 years through the Jha'vett, Davian meets the shapeshifter Malshash. Malshash reveals that he is an Augur and that he had a ring that belonged to Davian that he kept in part to pull Davian into his time. Malshash did this because Davian is the only person he knows of who is able to go through time via the Jha'vett and live, and Malshash wants to know if it is possible to change the future by changing the past. Malshash had Davian's ring because a future version of Davian had gone into the past before and had crossed paths with Malshash. Malshash determines to train Davian as much as possible in his Augur abilities so he will have the best chances of surviving the return trip through the Jha'vett. Davian trains by studying in the library of Deilannis, and practicing with Malshash. While in Deilannis, Davian learns to read, to slow time, to protect his own thoughts, to use Kan, to manipulate essence, to pull essence from other people/things, and to shapeshift. He also discovers that he was unable to use Essence earlier because he does not have a reserve of Essence inside of him, like other Gifted. He also learns that he has no Essence of his own, meaning that at some point he died, but that his body has been reflectively sustaining him since then by drawing Essence from his surroundings. In Deilannis Davian also reads Malshash's mind and discovers that Malshash was a very powerful Augur who, upon the murder of his wife on their wedding day, drew all of the Essence out of all of the attending guests to try and revive his dead wife. This not only didn't revive his wife, but killed all of the guests present at the wedding and summoned Nethgalla from the darklands. Davian is altered by experiencing this memory, and is darker and less innocent afterwards. Return to Andarra Shortly after reading Malshash, Davian is pulled back to the present time through the Jha'vett. He discovers that Nihim has died in the time elapsed since he was pulled back in time, and immediately embarks towards Ilin Illan. Along the way, he stops at an inn and encounters the Tol Shen elder Driscin Throll and Augur Ishelle. Throll tells Davian that he is a former member of the sig'nari and that they have been working on finding new Augurs to prepare them to return to power. He also, more immediately, is trying to gather Augurs in order to repair the Boundary. Davian does not trust Tol Shen and refuses to join them, but does say he will go with them after the defense of Ilin Illan until they can find a solution to repairing the Boundary. Throll also tells Davian that Taeris was the one who brought Davian to the school at Caladel as a child, and that he orchestrated the attack on Davian in order to force him to manifest his abilities. Davian does not believe what Throll tells him about Taeris. While at the inn, Ishelle also teaches Davian how to use Kan to become invisible. Upon his return to Andarra, Davian gets a guard to tell Prince Wirr that his friend from Calandra is at the gates waiting for him so he can get into the palace. When the king hears this, knowing that Wirr has not actually been in Calandra, he accuses Wirr of trying to sneak his Gifted friends into the palace. This reveals to the entire court that Torin is Gifted. In Ilin Illan, Davian also sees Asha again and they are both overjoyed to see each other alive. At the palace, Davian also asks Taeris if what Driscin Throll told him about Taeris orchestrating the attack is true. Taeris tells Davian that the time Davian was attacked was the first time he had met Davian, but Davian can sense that he is lying. Davian feels betrayed by Taeris and does not speak with him further. Davian then goes to see Ilseth Tenvar in prison to see if he can read him for information. Through Tenvar's memory, Davian discovers that Tenvar was ordered by a member of the Venerate to give Davian the box. In the memory Tenvar is told that if the box is delivered to Caeden, Aarkein Devaed's victory will be ensured. After seeing this memory, Davian rushes to the warehouse full of Vessels to try and stop Taeris and Caeden from finding the bronze box, but he is too late and Caeden leaves to collect Licanius. Defense of Ilin Illan Davian fights alongside Asha and Wirr to protect Ilin Illan. After the death of Elocien Andras, Wirr and Davian leave the walls of Ilin Illan to change the Tenets and allow the Gifted to fight for the defense of the city. Administrator Ionis attempts to force Wirr to change the Tenets to force all Gifted to kill themselves, but Davian draws forth all of Ionis's Essence before he can do it, killing him. Wirr places an enormous amount of trust in Davian as Davian recites the changes that Wirr dictates to him exactly, despite enormous temptation to change the words to give the Gifted more power. Wirr and Davian change the Tenets to allow Gifted to use the Gift to protect themselves and Andarra, and to remove the requirement for all Gifted to follow the orders of Administrators. The Gifted then join in the fight to defend Ilin Illan, but are still losing to the Blind. Just when it seems they are about to fall, Caeden reappears with Licanius and shortly dispatches of the entire invading force. Davian is grateful for Caeden's assistance, but becomes frustrated with him when it becomes clear Caeden intends to leave right away without explaining where he has been or what is happening. Davian attempts to draw on Caeden's Essence, just to keep him from leaving, but discovers that Caeden has a positively enormous reserve of Essence. Caeden seems almost completely unaffected by Davian's attack, and leaves. After the fight, Davian has time to talk with Asha. He tells her he is heading to Tol Shen with Ishelle, and asks if she'll go with him. She explains that she can do the most in Ilin Illan, and they part ways. Abilities *Reading - Davian can read people's thoughts and access their memories. He can also access protected memories if he forces his way through a person's mental defenses. His first Augur ability to manifest is his ability to detect lies, which is linked to his ability to read. *Foresight - Davian can see the future. He does not seem to have much control over this ability, and it only happens occasionally in dreams. *Time Manipulation - Davian can slow time for himself, making himself incredibly fast. He is also the only person to have survived going through the Rift to go back and forth through time. *Invisibility - Davian can manipulate kan to make light bounce back in a way so as to make him invisible *Essence - Davian can use Essence in the same way the Gifted can use Essence, although he has to pull from sources of Essence around him instead of pulling from his own Reserve. *Shapeshifting - Although warned against doing so, Davian is capable of shapeshifting into the form of other people. The person whose image he takes must already be dead however. The process is extremely painful. *Kan - Davian can also manipulate kan, which he has used to cut things. It is not clear what other uses there are for kan. *Other - There may be many other abilities not yet revealed because of the destruction of the three other Tols with more information or the fact that no previous Augurs are alive. Relationships Wirr - Davian's best friend. Although Wirr initially seems to better than Davian at most things, Davian does not harbor any resentment for his popular friend. Wirr and Davian's trust in each other is very deep, as Davian trusted Wirr with the knowledge of his power as an Augur, and Wirr later trusts Davian with his identity as Prince Torin Wirrander Andras. During the defense of Ilin Illan, Wirr also trusts Davian to change the Tenets exactly as he outlined, and Davian trusts Wirr's judgement as to how the Tenets should be changed. Asha - Davian's friend and romantic interest. Taeris Sarr - Davian's mentor. Taeris first helps Davian and Wirr escape from law enforcement in Desriel, and Wirr and Davian quickly learn to trust Taeris. Davian comes to see Taeris as a mentor, but later feels betrayed by Taeris when he learns that Taeris lied about Davian's youth. Caeden - Davian's friend, although Davian initially does not entirely trust him. Caeden trusts Davian enough to tell him about his doubts of his own innocence. Davian also tells Caeden that, even if he did murder those villagers, he obviously doesn't want to be that kind of person. Davian tells Caeden that no matter what he did in his past, he can choose who he wants to be moving forward. Also, when Davian went back in time, as Malshash, Caeden taught Davian how to use his Augur abilities. His shapeshifting is intially offputting to Davian, but he learns to deal with it. Davian felt frustrating by Caeden's refusal to answer certain questions or teach certain abilities, but it is unclear how much of Caeden's reticence was simply in order to focus Davian on abilities that would help him return home. Caeden seems both amazed and somewhat afraid of Davian's abilities. Category:Characters Category:Augur Category:Gifted Category:Main Characters Category:Andarra